Escape from New York

[Vivek]

Escape from New York turns 35 as it was released across US cinemas on this day in 1981. http://amzn.to/29GbdRF

One of my favourite John Carpenter films. Kurt Russell's portrayal of Snake Plissken is the embodiment of cool and badass.

 

[doppelganger]

Oh thank god, for a minute there I thought they were going to try and remake it.

 

[Vivek]

They are, but let's avoid talking about it and maybe it will go away .

 

[Apollo]

81 was a great year for movies!

 

[Jeyl]

They are, but let's avoid talking about it and maybe it will go away .

While not a technical remake, "Escape from LA" is such a huge rehash it might as well be considered a remake. Surely a remake couldn't possibly be as bad as that movie was.

 

[Vivek]

Yeah Escape from LA is Carpenter pretty much paying homage to himself and was a let down. Though Kurt Russell was still entertaining to watch.

Here is a video doing a comparison of some of the scenes.

[video=vimeo;139298918]https://vimeo.com/139298918[/video]

 

[karmajay]

I did like the basketball scene in Escape from LA. Although it took multiple shots to get it right, Russell does make all the shots in the allotted time even the long one.

 

[funboy1013xx]

uhm yeah the hang gliding scene was PATHETIC compared to the basketball shots.... oh damn I forgot the surfing doh :facepalm

 

[CB2001]

Yeah Escape from LA is Carpenter pretty much paying homage to himself and was a let down. Though Kurt Russell was still entertaining to watch.

Here is a video doing a comparison of some of the scenes.

https://vimeo.com/139298918

Well, the problem that many people had with EFLA was that it played too much like a remake, going as far as to literally borrowing similar shots (with the exception of the most common complaint: the surfing scene) and almost identical storyline. Me, I liked both films.

 

[Mola Rob]

I am a huge Carpenter fan but I would put Escape from L.A. in my top twenty worst movies of all time, I was so disappointed in the rehashed story and the pathetic action scenes. Makes me cringe just thinking about it.

 

[Funky]

I don't care who you are. The Bamgkok Rules scene in LA was worth suffering through.

 

[Jeyl]

I don't care who you are. The Bamgkok Rules scene in LA was worth suffering through.

The scene was featured in the trailer and was actually a bit more exciting there than in the actual film.

 

[Apollo]

L.A. is a guilty pleasure for me.

I'll watch ANYTHING that Carpenter does with Kurt in it!

 

[CB2001]

L.A. is a guilty pleasure for me.

I'll watch ANYTHING that Carpenter does with Kurt in it!

For me, it's more like, "I'll watch ANYTHING that Carpenter does." Period.

 

[Noeland]

Well, for me, that side by side illustrates why I did not enjoy EFLA near as much as EFNY. The visuals. EFNY is darker, lit more organically, and frankly it's framed better. It just has a grittier feel visually speaking, and I enjoy that. I think the performances by the cast around Snake were far better in EFNY. It felt like a movie made with passion, and EFLA felt like a movie made without passion.

 

[Vivek]

Absence of Dean Cundey is the major reason the visual aesthetics didn't get carried over to EFLA.

 

[CB2001]

Also, I think the reason why EFLA was a rehash of the original was interference from the studio. I remember seeing a previous draft of the script online that played out rather differently.